Jean Valjean
Jean Valjean is the main protagonist of Les Misérables. Novel Jean Valjean was born of a poor peasant family. His parents died when he was very young, leaving him with his older sister to fend for him. Unfortunately, his sister is widowed, having seven children to look after, the eldest being eight and the youngest being one year old. Valjean found work as a tree pruner in Faverolles, the same as his father, earning only a few sous a day. Winter passed. Valjean could not work, and so the family starved. He became a convict, imprisoned for breaking the window pane of Maubert Isabeau, the baker, to steal a loaf of bread to feed his sister's children. He was sent to prison for five years for "burglary at night in an inhabited house". He is paroled from prison 19 years later (after 4 unsuccessful escape attempts added 12 years and fighting back during the second escape attempt added 2 extra years). He entered the galleys in Toulon in 1796 and left in 1815. Rejected by society for being a former prisoner, he encounters the bishop Monsieur Myriel, the bishop of Digne who turns his life around by showing him mercy and encouraging him to become a changed man. While sitting and pondering on what Monsieur Myriel had said, he accidentally puts his foot on a forty-sous piece dropped by a young chimney-sweep named Petit Gervais. Valjean threatens him with his stick when he attempts to rouse Valjean from his reverie and retrieve his piece. He tells a passing priest his name, and the name of the young chimney-sweep, and this allows the police to charge him with armed robbery...a sentence that, if he were caught again, would return him to prison with a death-sentence. He manages to adopt the alias of Monsieur Madeleine in order to pursue an honest life, after saving the two children of the head policeman of Montreuil-sur-Mer, who therefore does not feel motivated to inquire into Monsieur Madeleine's past and did not even ask to see he passport. He introduces some new manufacturing techniques and eventually builds two factories and beco mes one of the wealthiest gentlemen in the area. It has been rumored that he had about 630,000 francs in the bank of Laffitte but had spent more than a million for the city and the poor. By popular acclaim he is elected to become mayor (after rejecting the offer once and rejecting the Legion Of Honor award). He encounters with Inspector Javert over Fantine's punishment, turns himself into the police to save a gentleman named "Champmathieu" (who the police think is Jean Valjean) from receiving a death-sentence, rescues Cosette from the Thénardiers, and adopts her. Discovered by Javert in Paris because of his habit of giving so much of his money to poor people, he manages to evade capture for the next several years in a garden...Old Fauchelevent, whose life he saved while mayor was employed there and wanted to return the favor and save Valjean's life. He saves Marius from incarceration and possible doom at the barricades, reveals his true identity to Marius and Cosette after their wedding, and is reunited with them just before his fate, having kept his promise to Monsieur Myriel. He then passes away probably from infection resulting from saving Marius from sewers during a battle against France's army. Musical Songs Act I *Prologue *At The End Of The Day *Fantine's Arrest *The Runaway Cart *Who Am I? *Come to Me (Fantine's Death) *The Confrontation *The Well Scene *The Bargain/The Thénardier Waltz of Treachery *Suddenly (2012 film only) *The Robbery/Javert's Intervention *In My Life *The Attack on Rue Plumet *One Day More Act II *Building the Barricade (Upon These Stones) *Night of Anguish *The First Attack *Bring Him Home *The Second Attack (Death of Gavroche) *Dog Eats Dog (The Sewers) *Every Day *Valjean's Confession *Valjean's Death *Finale List of Portrayers Musical * Maurice Barrier – Original French Concept Album, Original Paris stage cast * Colm Wilkinson – Original London cast, Original Broadway cast, 10th Anniversary concert * Michael Burgess – Original Canadian cast, 10th Anniversary concert (as one of the 17 Valjeans) * Robert Marien – 1991 Paris revival, 10th Anniversary concert (as one of the 17 Valjeans) * Ray Mangion - 2001 Malta tour * J. Mark McVey - 2002 West End production * Alexander Gemignani – 2006 Broadway revival * John Owen-Jones – 2006-2008: Broadway revival * Gerónimo Rauch – 2010-2011 (Madrid). 2011-2012 (Barcelona) * Ramin Karimloo – 2011-2012: The Queen's Theatre, 2013 Toronto cast * Alfie Boe – 25th Anniversary Concert at the O2 * Gerónimo Rauch – 2012-2013: West End production. * Daniel Koek - Current West End Production * Nicolás Martinelli – 2013-2014 Spain Tour * Cameron Neal - School Edition at the Elgiva theatre * Janusz Kruciński - 2010-2012 Roma Theatre in Warsaw * Damian Aleksander - 2010-2012 Roma Theatre in Warsaw Movies * Maurice Costello – 1909 film * Henry Krauss – 1913 films * William Farnum – 1917 film * Gabriel Gabrio – 1925 film * Harry Baur – 1934 films * Fredric March – 1935 film * Gino Cervi – 1948 film * Michael Rennie – 1952 film * Jean Gabin – 1958 film * Gastone Moschin – 1964 mini-series * Frank Finlay – 1967 mini-series * Georges Géret – 1972 mini-series * Sergio Bustamante – 1973 series * Richard Jordan – 1978 film * Lino Ventura – 1982 film/1985 mini-series * Liam Neeson – 1998 film * Gérard Depardieu – 2000 mini-series * Hugh Jackman – 2012 film External Links * Jean Valjean's Wikipedia page Gallery Film Valjean article story main.jpg Jeanvaljean.jpg JV2.jpg who_am_I?.jpeg Fantine:valjean.jpeg Suddenly.png The Well Scene.png Who Am I.png Runawaycart.png Whathaveidone.png Onparole.png les-mis-hugh-jackman-2.jpg tumblr_mj38ltbuNk1s6252io11_1280.jpg tumblr_mj3fnikZJE1s6252io1_1280.jpg tumblr_mtszykQTYS1sdjsjxo1_500.jpg 404577021_640.jpg tumblr_inline_muxu92scH71rm09gb.jpg tumblr_mvgkisLtrS1sdjsjxo1_500.jpg|Jean Valjean holding Cosette tumblr_mwrwo7lAP41sdjsjxo1_500.jpg tumblr_mwvdetWN8I1sdjsjxo2_500.jpg tumblr_muaox1MV0r1sdjsjxo2_500.jpg tumblr_mwm44xObpl1sdjsjxo2_500.jpg tumblr_msu531RTS71sdjsjxo1_500.jpg tumblr_mr496tZKN41sdjsjxo1_500.jpg 1998 Film Musical Colm Wilkinson.jpg Co;m Wilkinson.png is.jpg colm-wilkinson-as-jean-valjean.jpg|Colm Wilkinson as Jean Valjean alfieboe.jpeg|Alfie Boe as Valjean in the 25th Anniversary Concert alfie-boe-as-valjean.jpeg ramin_as_valjean.jpg|Ramin Karimloo as Jean Valjean Ramin and Hadley.jpg januszkrucinskiasjeanvaljean.jpg|Janusz Kruciński as Jean Valjean in the Roma Theatre in Warsaw les-mis-10.2.jpg imagescosval.jpg tumblr_mxuyu8Yx6y1rnqzobo1_500.jpg tumblr_mxtg9mAMYq1rnqzobo1_500.jpg tumblr_mxhlkaifh11rnqzobo1_500.jpg tumblr_mxnjdyX1yv1rnqzobo1_500.jpg Category:Characters Category:Characters who passed away Category:Characters in the musical Category:Anime Characters